DisasZt - Shadow & Lightning LP [Mainframe]

Drum & Bass has come a long, long way since its 1990s roots as a UK-born (and dominated) form of dance music. In 2011, D&B can truly be called a global movement, with some of the genre’s best producers, parties, labels and DJs to be found far beyond British shores. And while Brazil and New Zealand are well renowned for their love of the bass and drum, it’s in Austria where one of the most vibrant and self-sufficient drum & bass scenes can be found right now.

Much of this is down to one man – Daniel Fuerst-Zoffel, better known in D&B circles as DisasZt. After his first steps as a DJ back in the mid-90s, DisasZt has dedicated the last 15 years of his life to furthering drum & bass in his homeland and beyond, tirelessly DJing, promoting, running the globally respected label Mainframe Recordings, discovering and pushing Camo & Krooked and, of course, producing premium quality D&B alongside some of Europe’s very best artists.

Ten years after his debut productions began to make their mark DisasZt is now ready to release his debut album – ‘Shadow & Lightning’ – on his own MainframeRecordings imprint. Featuring 16 tracks that demonstrate the full variety of D&B in 2011, the album sees DisasZt join forces with a raft of producers from both around the world and his homeland, and acts as an impressive demonstration of both the modern health of the genre and its globe-spanning influence. New Zealand’s Trei, Hungary’s Chris SU, fellow Austrians Kos, Treo and Tenchu, and of course regular DisasZt studio partner and one-time Ram Trilogy member Shimon are just some of the collaborators onboard, bringing with them the fresh influence and inspiration needed to make ‘Shadow & Lightning’ really stand out from the crowd.

Whether it’s the soothing, guitar-led liquid of intro track ‘Rainy Days’, the uplifting dancefloor filling prime-time roll of ‘Kissed’, the brooding half-time swagger of ‘Unseen’, the MC-led jump-up of ‘Rumours’ with Coppa, or the alien future filth of ‘Ultimate Win’; almost every shade and style of 21st century D&B makes an appearance on ‘Shadow Lightning’. With so much quality and variety on show, this is set to be a breakthrough album for DisasZt and promises to see the Austrian step out of the Shadow and into the light, once and for all.